Yesterday, an experiment by the MythBusters (PM contributing editors Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman) nearly ended in disaster when a cannonball escaped the controlled confines of a test firing range.

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Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman have set off dozens, if not hundreds, of controlled explosions and fired myriad ballistics at a bomb disposal range in Dublin, Calif., while shooting episodes of MythBusters. But yesterday, one went dangerously awry.

The MythBusters fired what the San Francisco Chronicle is calling a "cantelope-sized cannonball" from a homemade cannon, attempting to hit large water containers. The cannonball missed the target and bounded completely out of the test range into a residential neighborhood.

According to the Chronicle, the projectile bounced in front of a house and then flew completely through it, leaving a gaping hole in the wall on its way out. (The family was at home, but unhurt.) The cannonball then allegedly continued bounding through the neighborhood, coming to rest only when it slammed into a minivan.

Savage and Hyneman (who are PM contributing editors) have been blowing things up and conducting zany experiments in the name of science on MythBusters since 2003. The show strongly warns viewers not to try the experiments at home, and the MythBusters's emphasis on safety on set had helped them avoid mishaps like this one.

Here's the official statement from Discovery Channel and Beyond Productions:

"On Tuesday, December 6, 2011, MythBusters, produced for Discovery Channel by Beyond Productions, was filming on a closed set at the Alameda County Sheriff's Department bomb range in Alameda County, California. During the testing, a cannonball took an unforeseen bounce from a safety berm. No injuries were reported, but damage was reported in one Dublin home and one parked car. Sgt. JD Nelson, Public Information Officer and bomb technician for the Alameda County Sheriff's office, who is a regular safety explosives expert for MythBusters, was on site and all proper safety protocol was observed. Beyond Productions is currently assessing the situation and working with those whose property was affected."